Sheet material dispenser assembly for selectively dispensing sheet material from a plurality of supplies of rolled sheet material

Abstract

A dispenser assembly facilitating selective dispensing of sheet material from a plurality of supplies of sheet material can be provided. The dispenser assembly can include a drive system to facilitate dispensing of the sheet material from the plurality of supplies of sheet material from the dispenser. The drive system can include a plurality of driven rollers each configured to engage and move sheet material from a respective supply of sheet material, and a drive mechanism driving the plurality of driven rollers and connected thereto by a belt driven transmission. When the drive mechanism is driven in one direction, one of the plurality of driven rollers is rotated to dispense sheet material from one of the plurality of supplies of sheet material, and when the drive mechanism is driven in the opposite direction, another one of the plurality of driven rollers is rotated to dispense sheet material from another supply of sheet material.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A dispenser assembly facilitating selective dispensing of sheet material from a plurality of supplies of sheet material, comprising:
 a dispenser housing having a plurality of support assemblies rotatably supporting the plurality of supplies of sheet material within the dispenser housing, and a discharge for dispensing of the sheet material from the plurality of supplies of sheet material from the dispenser housing; the plurality of supplies of sheet material including a first supply of sheet material and a second supply of sheet material respectively supported within the dispenser housing by a first support assembly and a second support assembly of the plurality of support assemblies; 
 a plurality of guide rollers positioned along and engaging the plurality of supplies of sheet material, the plurality of guide rollers including a first guide roller engaging the first supply of sheet material and a second guide roller engaging the second supply of sheet material; and 
 a drive system configured to facilitate dispensing of the sheet material from the plurality of supplies of sheet material along respective discharge paths and from the discharge of the dispenser housing, the drive system including:
 a plurality of driven rollers including a first driven roller corresponding to the first supply of sheet material and configured to engage and move sheet material from the first supply of sheet material along a first discharge path, and a second driven roller corresponding to the second supply of sheet material and configured to engage and move sheet material from the second supply of sheet material along a second discharge path; 
 a drive mechanism connected to the plurality of driven rollers by a belt driven transmission, the drive mechanism being driven in a first direction to drive the first driven roller and dispense the sheet material from the first supply of sheet material, and the drive mechanism being driven in a second direction to drive the second driven roller and dispense the sheet material from the second supply of sheet material. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The dispenser assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the second driven roller remains generally stationary when the drive mechanism is driven in the first direction to drive the first driven roller, and wherein the first driven roller remains substantially stationary when the drive mechanism is driven in the second direction to drive the second driven roller. 
     
     
       3. The dispenser assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the belt drive transmission includes a drive belt that operatively engages the drive mechanism, the first driven roller, and the second driven roller for driving of the first driven roller or the second driven roller. 
     
     
       4. The dispenser assembly of  claim 3 , further comprising:
 a first driven roller belt gear operatively connected to the first driven roller; 
 a second driven roller belt gear operatively connected to the second driven roller; and 
 a drive mechanism belt gear operatively connected to the drive mechanism, wherein the drive belt engages the first driven roller belt gear, the second driven roller belt gear, and the drive mechanism belt gear to transfer power between the drive mechanism and the first driven roller or the second drive roller. 
 
     
     
       5. The dispenser assembly of  claim 4 , wherein the first driven roller belt gear and the second drive roller belt gear each include a clutch mechanism, wherein when the drive mechanism is driven in the first direction, the clutch mechanism of the first driven roller engages to transfer power to the first driven roller so that the first driven roller is driven by the drive mechanism and rotated to dispense the sheet material from the first supply of sheet material, while the clutch mechanism of the second driven roller is substantially disengaged such that the second driven roller remains substantially stationary, and
 wherein when the drive mechanism is driven in the second direction, the clutch mechanism of the second driven roller engages to transfer power to the second driven roller so that the second driven roller is driven by the drive mechanism and rotated to dispense the sheet material from the second supply of sheet material, while the clutch mechanism of the first driven roller is substantially disengaged such that the first driven roller remains substantially stationary. 
 
     
     
       6. The dispenser assembly of  claim 3 , further comprising a tensioning assembly including a bracket movably supporting the drive mechanism along the dispenser housing, and one or more biasing members coupled to the bracket and configured to bias the tensioning assembly an amount sufficient to apply tension along the drive belt and/or for providing dampening of vibrations from an operation of the dispenser assembly. 
     
     
       7. The dispenser assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising at least one cutting mechanism positioned along the discharge of the dispenser housing for severance of dispensed sheet material from the first supply of sheet material or second supply of sheet material. 
     
     
       8. The dispenser assembly of  claim 7 , further comprising a pawl member assembly with a pivotally mounted pawl member located proximate the cutting mechanism such that movement of the dispensed sheet material into the cutting mechanism moves the pawl member from a first position to a second position, wherein the pawl member assembly transmits one or more signals to a control circuit of the dispenser housing if the pawl member is moved to the second position to notify the control circuit that a portion of the dispensed sheet material has been removed. 
     
     
       9. The dispensing assembly of  claim 8 , further comprising sheet material detection sensors each including an emitter and a detector focused across at least a portion of the discharge paths, wherein the sheet material detection sensor facilitates verification that a portion of the dispensed sheet material has been removed from the discharge. 
     
     
       10. The dispensing assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a monitoring system configured to determine a supply level of the first or second supply of sheet material, wherein upon a determination that the supply level of the first or second supply of sheet material is below a threshold level, the direction of the drive mechanism is changed from the first direction to the second direction to dispense the sheet material from the second supply of sheet material or from the second direction to the first direction to dispense the sheet material from the first supply of sheet material. 
 
     
     
       11. A dispenser assembly facilitating selective dispensing of sheet material from a plurality of supplies of sheet material, comprising:
 a dispenser housing having a plurality of support assemblies each rotatably supporting a corresponding supply of sheet material of the plurality of supplies of sheet material within the dispenser housing, and a discharge for dispensing of the sheet material from the plurality of supplies of sheet material from the dispenser housing; 
 a plurality of guide rollers positioned along and engaging the plurality of supplies of sheet material; and 
 a drive system that facilitates dispensing of the sheet material from the plurality of supplies of sheet material along respective discharge paths and from the discharge of the dispenser housing, the drive system including:
 a plurality of driven rollers each configured to engage and move sheet material from a respective supply of sheet material along a discharge path and from the discharge of the dispenser housing; 
 a drive mechanism connected to the plurality of driven rollers by a belt driven transmission, wherein when the drive mechanism is driven in one direction, one of the plurality of driven rollers is rotated to dispense sheet material from its respective supply of sheet material, and when the drive mechanism is driven in the opposite direction, another one of the plurality of driven rollers is rotated to dispense sheet material from its respective supply of sheet material. 
 
 
     
     
       12. The dispensing assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of support assemblies each include one or more slots or grooves defined within or along the dispenser housing that are configured to receive an end portion of the corresponding supplies of sheet material, wherein the one or more slots or grooves are configured such that as the sheet material is fed from the plurality of supplies of sheet material a substantially constant downward is force exerted by the plurality of supplies of sheet material on their corresponding guide rollers of the plurality of guide rollers. 
     
     
       13. The dispenser assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the belt drive transmission includes a drive belt that operatively engages the drive mechanism and the plurality of driven rollers for transferring power between the drive mechanism and the plurality of drive rollers. 
     
     
       14. The dispenser assembly of  claim 13 , further comprising a tensioning assembly including a bracket movably supporting the drive mechanism along the dispenser housing, and one or more biasing members coupled to the bracket and configured to bias the tensioning assembly sufficient to apply tension along the drive belt and/or for providing dampening of vibrations from an operation of the dispenser assembly. 
     
     
       15. The dispensing assembly of  claim 11 , wherein each of the plurality of driven rollers includes a clutch mechanism integrated therewith that facilitates selective rotation of the plurality of driven rollers based on the driving direction of the drive mechanism. 
     
     
       16. The dispenser assembly of  claim 11 , further comprising at least one cutting mechanism positioned along the discharge of the dispenser housing for severance of dispensed sheet material from the plurality of supplies of sheet material. 
     
     
       17. The dispenser assembly of  claim 16 , further comprising a pawl member assembly with a pivotally mounted pawl member located proximate the at least one cutting mechanism such that movement of the dispensed sheet material into the cutting mechanism moves the pawl member and causes the transmission of one or more signals to a control circuit of the dispenser housing to notify the control circuit that a portion of the dispensed sheet material has been removed. 
     
     
       18. The dispensing assembly of  claim 11 , further comprising a sheet material detection sensor positioned along the discharge to verify that sheet material has been removed from the discharge. 
     
     
       19. The dispensing assembly of  claim 11 , further comprising a monitoring system configured to determine a supply level of one or more of the plurality of supplies of sheet material, wherein upon a determination that the supply level is below a threshold level, the direction of the drive mechanism is changed. 
     
     
       20. The dispensing assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of support assemblies each include one or more slots or grooves defined within or along the dispenser housing that are configured to receive an end portion of the corresponding supplies of sheet material, wherein the one or more slots or grooves are configured such that as the sheet material is fed from the plurality of supplies of sheet material a substantially constant downward is force exerted by the plurality of supplies of sheet material on their corresponding driven rollers of the plurality of driven rollers.